THE CORSAIRS OF THE SOUTH
When, in the year 1516, Hadrian, Cardinal St. Chryogon, wrote to Wolsey
bitterly lamenting that from Taracina right away to Pisa pirates,
consisting of Turks and African Moors, were swarming the sea, he was
scarcely guilty of any exaggeration. Multifarious and murderous though
the pirates of Northern Europe had long since shown themselves, yet it is
the Mediterranean which, throughout history, and more especially during
the sixteenth century, has earned the distinction of being the favourite
and most eventful sphere of robbery by sea.
You may ask how this came about. It was no longer the case of the old
Cilicians or the Balearic Islanders coming into activity once more. On
the contrary, the last-mentioned people, far from being pirates in the
sixteenth century, were actually pillaged than pillagers. A new element
had now been introduced, and we enter upon a totally different sphere
of the piratical history. Before we seek to inquire into the origin and
development of this new force which comes across the pages of history,
let us bear in mind the change which had come over the Mediterranean.
During the classical times piracy was indeed bad enough, because, among
other things, it interfered so seriously with the corn ships which
carried the means of sustenance. But in those days the number of freight
ships of any kind was infinitesimal compared with the enormous number of
fighting craft that were built by the Mediterranean nations. And however
much Greece and Rome laboured to develop the warlike galley, yet the
evolution of the merchant ship was sadly neglected, partly, no doubt,
because of the risks which a merchant ship ran and partly because the
centuries of fighting evoked little encouragement for a ship of commerce.
During the centuries which followed the downfall of the Roman Empire
it must not be supposed that the sea was bereft of pirates. As we have
already seen, the decay of Rome was commensurate with the revival
of piracy. But with the gradual spread of southern civilisation the
importance of and the demand for commercial ships, as differentiated from
fighting craft, increased to an unheard-of extent. No one requires to be
reminded of the rise to great power of Venice and Genoa and Spain. They
became great overseas traders within limits, and this postulated the
ships in which goods could be carried. So it came to this that crossing
and recrossing the Mediterranean there were more big-bellied ships
full of richer cargoes and traversing the sea with greater regularity
than ever had been in the history of the world. And as there will
always be robbers when given the opportunity, either by sea or by land,
irrespective of race or time, so when this amount of wealth was now
afloat the sea-robber had every incentive to get rich quickly by a means
that appealed in the strongest terms to an adventurous temperament.
In Italy the purely warlike ship had become so obsolete that, in the
opinion of some authorities, it was not till about the middle of the
ninth century that these began to be built, at any rate as regards
that great maritime power, Venice. She had been too concerned with the
production and exchange of wealth to centre her attention on any species
of ship other than those which would carry freights. But so many defeats
had she endured at the hands of the Saracens and pirates that ships
specially suitable for combat had, from the year 841, to be built. The
Saracens hailed from Arabia, and it is notable that at that time the
Arabian sailors who used to sail across the Indian Ocean were far and
away the most scientific navigators in the whole world, many of their
Arabic terms still surviving in nautical terminology to this day. Indeed,
the modern mariner who relies so much on nautical instruments scarcely
realises how much he owes to these early seamen. Just as the Cilicians
and others had in olden times harassed the shores of the Mediterranean,
so now the Saracens made frequent incursions into Sardinia, Corsica,
Sicily, as well as intercepting the ships of the Adriatic.
Let us remember that both in the north and south of Europe the sailing
seasons for century after century were limited to that period which is
roughly indicated between the months of April and the end of September.
Therefore the pirate knew that if he confined his attentions to that
period and within certain sea-areas, he would be able to encompass
practically the whole of the world’s sea-borne trade. These sailing
periods were no arbitrary arrangement: they were part of the maritime
legislation, and only the most daring and, at the same time, most lawless
merchant skippers ventured forth in the off-season.
Realising that the mariner had in any lengthy voyage to contend not
merely with bad weather but probably with pirates, the merchant pilots
were instructed to know how to avoid them. For instance, their main
object should be to make the merchant ship as little conspicuous on the
horizon as possible. Thus, after getting clear of the land, the white
sail should be lowered and a black one hoisted instead. They were warned
that it was especially risky to change sail at break of day when the
rising sun might make this action easily observable. A man was to be sent
aloft to scan the sea, looking for these rovers and keep a good look
out. That black sail was called the “wolf,” because it had the colour
and cunning of such an animal. At night, too, similar precautions were
employed against any danger of piratical attack, strict silence being
absolutely enforced, so that the boatswain was not even allowed to use
his whistle, nor the ship’s bell to be sounded. Every one knows how
easily a sound carries on the sea, especially by night, so the utmost
care was to be exercised lest a pirate hovering about might have the rich
merchant ship’s presence betrayed to her avaricious ears.
But the Saracens, whose origin I have just mentioned, must not be
confused with the Barbarian corsairs. It is with the latter—the grand
pirates of the South—that I pass on now to deal. So powerful did they
become that it took the efforts of the great maritime powers of Europe
till the first quarter of the nineteenth century before they could
exterminate this scourge: and even to-day, in this highly civilised
century, if you were to be becalmed off the coast of North Africa in
a sailing yacht, you would soon find some of the descendants of these
Barbarian corsairs coming out with their historic tendency to kill you
and pillage your ship. If this statement should seem to any reader
somewhat incredible, I would refer him to the captain of any modern
steamship who habitually passes that coast: and I would beg also to call
to his attention the incident a few years ago that occurred to the famous
English racing yacht _Ailsa_, which was lying becalmed somewhere between
Spain and Africa. But for a lucky breeze springing up, her would-be
assailants might have captured a very fine prize.
I shall use the word Moslem to mean Mussulman, or Mohammedan, or Moor,
and I shall ask the reader to carry his mind back to the time when
Ferdinand and Isabella turned the Moors out from Spain, and sent them
across the straits of Gibraltar back to Africa. For seven hundred years
these Moors had lived in the Iberian peninsula. It must be admitted in
fairness that these Moors were exceedingly gifted intellectually, and
there are ample evidences in Spain to this day of their accomplishments.
On the other hand, it is perfectly easy to appreciate the desire of a
Christian Government to banish these Mohammedans from a Catholic country.
Equally comprehensible is the bitter hatred which these Moors for ever
after manifested against all Christians of any nation, but against the
Spanish more especially.
What were these Spanish Moors, now expatriated, to do? They spread
themselves along the North African coast, but it was not immediately that
they took to the sea; when, however, they did so accustom themselves it
was not as traders but as pirates of the worst and most cruel kind. The
date of their expulsion from Granada was 1492, and within a few years of
this they had set to work to become avenged. The type of craft which they
favoured was of the galley species, a vessel that was of great length, in
proportion to her extreme shallowness, and was manned by a considerable
number of oarsmen. Sail power was employed but only as auxiliary rather
than of main reliance. Such a craft was light, easily and quickly
manœuvred, could float in creeks and bays close in to the shore, or could
be drawn up the beach if necessary. In all essential respects she was
the direct lineal descendant of the old fighting galleys of Greece and
Rome. From about the beginning of the sixteenth century till the battle
of Lepanto in 1571 the Moslem corsair was at his best as a sea-rover and
a powerful racial force. And if he was still a pest to shipping after
that date, yet his activities were more of a desultory nature. Along
the Barbarian coast at different dates he made himself strong, though
of these strongholds Algiers remained for the longest time the most
notorious.
In considering these Moslem corsairs one must think of men who were as
brutal as they were clever, who became the greatest galley-tacticians
which the world has ever seen. Their greed and lust for power and
property were commensurate with their ability to obtain these. Let it not
be supposed for one moment that during the grand period these Moorish
pirate leaders were a mere ignorant and uncultured number of men. On
the contrary, they possessed all the instincts of a clever diplomatist,
united to the ability of a great admiral and an autocratic monarch.
Dominating their very existence was their bitter hatred of Christians
either individually or as nations. And though a careful distinction must
be made between these Barbarian corsairs and the Turks, who were often
confused in the sixteenth-century accounts of these rovers, yet from a
very early stage the Moorish pirates and the Turks assisted each other.
You have only to remember that they were both Moslems; to remind yourself
that the downfall of Constantinople in 1453 gave an even keener incentive
to harass Christians; and to recollect that though the Turks were great
fighters by land yet they were not seamen. They had an almost illimitable
quantity of men to draw upon, and for this as well as other reasons it
was to the Moors’ interests that there should be a close association with
them.
During the fifteenth and especially the sixteenth centuries there was
in general European use a particular word which instantly suggested a
certain character that would stink in the nostrils of any Christian,
be he under the domination of Elizabeth or Charles V. This word was
“renegade,” which, of course, is derived from the Latin _nego_, I deny.
“Renegade,” or, as the Elizabethan sailors often used it, “renegado”
signifies an apostate from the faith—a deserter or turncoat. But it was
applied in those days almost exclusively to the Christian who had so far
betrayed his religion as to become a Moslem. In the fifteenth century a
certain Balkan renegade was exiled from Constantinople by the Grand Turk.
From there he proceeded to the south-west, took up his habitation in the
island of Lesbos in the Ægean Sea, married a Christian widow and became
the father of two sons, named respectively Uruj and Kheyr-ed-din. The
renegade, being a seaman, it was but natural that the two sons should be
brought up to the same avocation.
Having regard to the ancestry of these two men, and bearing in mind that
Lesbos had long been notorious for its piratical inhabitants, the reader
will in no wise be surprised to learn that these two sons resolved to
become pirates too. They were presently to reach a state of notoriety
which time can never expunge from the pages of historical criminals.
For the present let us devote our attention to the elder brother, Uruj.
We have little space to deal with the events of his full life, but this
brief sketch may suffice. The connection of these two brothers with the
banished Moors is that of organisers and leaders of a potential force of
pirates. Uruj, having heard of the successes which the Moorish galleys
were now attaining, of the wonderful prizes which they had carried off
from the face of the sea, felt the impulse of ambition and responded to
the call of the wild. So we come to the year 1504, and we find him in
the Mediterranean longing for a suitable base whence he could operate;
where, too, he could haul his galleys ashore during the winter and refit.
[Illustration: A DARING ATTACK
Uruj with his one craft attacked the two galleys of Pope Julius II
laden with goods from Genoa. His officers remonstrated with Uruj on the
desperate venture, but to enforce his commands and prevent any chance of
flight he had the oars thrown overboard. He then attacked and overcame
the galleys.]
For a time Tunis seemed to be the most alluring spot in every way:
and strategically it was ideal for the purpose of rushing out and
intercepting the traffic passing between Italy and Africa. He came to
terms with the Sultan of Tunis, and, in return for one-fifth of the booty
obtained, Uruj was permitted to use this as his headquarters, and from
here he began with great success to capture Italian galleys, bringing
back to Tunis both booty and aristocratic prisoners for perpetual exile.
The women were cast into the Sultan’s harem, the men were chained to the
benches of the galleys.
One incident alone would well illustrate the daring of Uruj, who had now
been joined by his brother. The story is told by Mr. Stanley Lane Poole
in his history of the Barbarian corsairs, that one day, when off Elba,
two galleys belonging to Pope Julius II. were coming along laden with
goods from Genoa for Civita Vecchia. The disparity and the daring may
be realised when we state that each of these galleys was twice the size
of Uruj’s craft. The Papal galleys had become separated, and this made
matters easier for the corsair. In spite of the difference in size, he
was determined to attack. His Turkish crew, however, remonstrated and
thought it madness, but Uruj answered this protestation by hurling most
of the oars overboard, thus making escape impossible: they had to fight
or die.
This was the first time that Turkish corsairs had been seen off Elba,
and as the Papal galley came on and saw the turbaned heads, a spirit
of consternation spread throughout the ship. The corsair galley came
alongside, there was a volley of firing, the Turkish men leapt aboard,
and before long the ship and the Christians were captured. The
Christians were sent below, and the Papal ship was now manned by Turks
who disguised themselves in the Christians’ clothes. And now they were
off to pursue the second galley. As they came up to her the latter had no
suspicion, but a shower of arrows and shot, followed by another short,
sharp attack, made her also a captive. Into Tunis came the ships, and the
capture amazed both Barbarian corsair and the whole of Christendom alike.
The fame of Uruj spread, and along the whole coast of North Africa he
was regarded with a wonder mingled with the utmost admiration. He became
known by the name Barbarossa, owing to his own physical appearance, the
Italian word _rossa_ signifying red, and _barba_ meaning a beard. He
followed up this success by capturing next year a Spanish ship with 500
soldiers. And there were other successes, so that in five years he had
eight vessels. But Tunis now became too small for him, so for a time he
moved to the island of Jerba, on the east coast of Tunis, and from there
he again harassed Italy.
Such was the fame of Barbarossa that he was invited to help the Moors. It
chanced that the Moslem king of Bujeya had been driven out of his city
by the Spaniards, and the exile appealed to Barbarossa to assist him
in regaining his own. The reward offered to the Turk was that, in the
event of victory, Barbarossa should henceforth be allowed the free use
of Bujeya, the strategic advantage of this port being that it commanded
the Spanish sea. The Turk accepted the invitation on these terms, and
having now a dozen galleys, with ample armament, in addition to 1000
Turkish soldiers, as well as a number of renegades and Moors, he landed
before the town in August of 1512. Here he found the King ready with
his 3000 troops, and they proceeded to storm the bastion, in which an
all too weak Spanish garrison had been left. Still, for eight days the
Spaniards held out, and then when a breach was made and a fierce assault
was being carried out, Barbarossa had the misfortune to have his left arm
amputated, so, Bujeya being now left alone, Barbarossa and his brother
put to sea again. They had not won the victory, but they had captured a
rich Genoese galley full of merchandise. Barbarossa took her back with
him to his headquarters, and while he recovered from his wounds his
brother Kheyr-ed-din acted in his stead.
Not unnaturally the Genoese were angered at the loss of their fine
galliot and sent forth Andrea Doria, the greatest Christian admiral, with
a dozen galleys to punish the Turks. The Christians landed before Tunis,
drove Kheyr-ed-din back into Tunis, and took away to Genoa one-half
of Barbarossa’s ships. Kheyr-ed-din now proceeded to Jerba to build
other ships as fast as possible, and as soon as his wounds allowed him,
Barbarossa here joined him. Meanwhile the Moors were still chafing at
their inability to get even with the Spaniards, and once more an attempt
was made to take Bujeya, though unsuccessfully, and the corsair’s ships
were burnt lest they might fall into the hands of the enemy.
At length the Barbarossas resolved to quit Tunis and Jerba, for they
had now chosen to settle at Jijil, sixty miles to the east of Bujeya.
Their fame had come before them; the inhabitants were proud to welcome
the brother corsairs who had done many wonderful things by land and sea,
and before long the elder Barbarossa was chosen as their Sultan. In 1516
died Ferdinand, and about this time the Algerine Moors declined any
longer to pay tribute to Spain. To Barbarossa came an invitation to aid
these inhabitants of Algiers in driving the Spanish garrison from their
fort. The invitation was accepted, 6000 men and sixteen galliots were
got together. Arrived before the fortress of Algiers, Barbarossa offered
a safe conduct to the garrison if they would surrender, but the latter’s
reply was merely to remind the corsair of Bujeya. Then for twenty days
Barbarossa battered away at the fortress, but without making a breach,
and meanwhile the Moors began to regret that they had asked the red beard
to aid them. But it would be less easy to turn them out now that once
these dare-devils had set foot on their territory. Barbarossa knew this
and waxed insolent. The Algerines made common cause with the soldiers in
the fortress, and a general rising against the red beard was planned. But
they had reckoned without their guest. For Barbarossa had spies at work
and became informed of this plot.
Whilst at prayers one Friday in the mosque, Barbarossa had the gates
closed, the conspirators brought before him one by one, and then after
twenty-two of them had been put to death there was an end to this
plotting against the corsair of Lesbos. Barbarossa increased in power,
in the number of his galleys, in the extent of his territory and in the
number of his subjects, so that by now he had become Sultan of Middle
Barbary. Practically the whole of that territory marked on our modern
maps of Algeria was under his sway. Step by step, leaping from one
success to another, ignoring his occasional reverses, he had risen from
a mere common pirate to the rank of a powerful Sultan. So potent had he
become, in fact, that he was able to make treaties with other Barbarian
Sultans, and all the summer season his galleys were scouring the seas
bringing back increased wealth and more unfortunate Christian prisoners.
Richly laden merchant ships from Genoa, from Naples, from Venice, from
Spain set forth from home, and neither the ships nor their contents were
ever permitted to return or to reach their ports of destination.
However, the time came when the Christian States could no longer endure
this terrible condition of affairs. And Charles V. was moved to send a
strong force to deal with the evil. Ten thousand seasoned troops were
sent in a large fleet of galleys to Northern Africa, and at last the
wasp was killed. For Barbarossa, with his 1500 men, was defeated, and he
himself was slain while fighting boldly. Unfortunately the matter ended
there, and the troops, instead of pressing home their victory and wiping
the Barbarian coast clean of this Moorish dirt, left Algiers severely
alone and returned to their homes. Had they, instead, ruthlessly sought
out this lawless piratical brood, the troublesome scourge of the next
three centuries would probably never have caused so many European ships
and so many English and foreign sailors and others to end their days
under the lash of tyrannical monsters.